Detroit’s Superheroes and What They’d Be Doing in the D Today

By: Michael Fossbakk

June 7, 2017

Today, superheroes are everywhere. They’re in blockbuster movies, TV shows and more. It’s hard to escape them. But, did you know that there are quite a few comic book superheroes with roots in Detroit? Some are more popular than others, but it’s hard not to wonder what they’d be up to in the city today in between fighting crime and stopping the bad guy’s nefarious plot. Hmmmm…

John Stewart (Green Lantern)

Known to fans of the Justice League cartoon as their Green Lantern, John Stewart was actually the third human being inducted into the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps. While he was born and raised in Detroit, Stewart spends a lot of time off-planet. However, the leadership skills he gained as a member of the United States Marine Corps would make him great for training tomorrow’s Detroit Police cadets or maybe mentoring DPS students on the merits of good leadership.

Luther Manning (Deathlok)

Luther Manning’s history is fairly convoluted, involving cybernetic enhancements, time travel and cloning. At the root of his character is his love for his wife and son. If he were around today, he’d probably be spending time with them, shopping at Eastern Market on Sundays, catching a Tigers game, or just enjoying a cold, craft brew from one of Detroit’s many craft breweries…you know, when there isn’t an apocalypse to prevent.

Mari McCabe (Vixen)

Depending on the timeline of her character, Mari McCabe is either a budding fashion designer or the leader of a fashion empire. In either case, when she isn’t running a company or designing new clothes, she’s fighting crime as Vixen. Currently, McCabe is the star of an animated web series named after her alter ego and set in Detroit. One can only imagine the influence she would have as a fashion icon in Detroit today and the good she would bring to the city through her philanthropic endeavors.

Francisco Ramon (Vibe)

Fans of The CW’s The Flash TV series will already know Francisco “Cisco” Ramon, A.K.A. Vibe. Though the show has neglected the comic book character’s Detroit background, Cisco is very much a Detroit native. His super powers come in the form of the amplification of vibrational frequencies. It’s no wonder Cisco was known to get down on the dance floor. Today, he’d probably be busting a move at one of Detroit’s dance clubs, like Delux Lounge and Club Gold Coast, when he isn’t busting up another bad guy.

These are just a few of the many superheroes to grace the pages of a comic book and call Detroit home. In fact, in the 1980s, there was a Detroit chapter of the Justice League, DC’s de facto superhero team, created by Aquaman. He recruited some of the aforementioned heroes, like Vixen and Vibe, to be a part of the team, but the series only last a few years before the team disbanded. Like the city itself, here’s to hoping the Detroit Justice League chapter gets a rebirth of its own.